Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Virgil van Dijk are among the 30 nominees for the 2019 Ballon d’Or as they contest the crown of best player in the world.
Barcelona captain, Messi is in the hunt for his sixth Ballon d’Or, having last won the accolade in 2015, and will be hoping to add it to his collection after already claiming FIFA’s best player award in September.
Juventus forward Ronaldo, whose last Ballon d’Or triumph came in 2017, could also potentially win the award for the sixth time, while Van Dijk, if he is chosen, would become the first defender to win it since Paolo Cannavaro in 2006.
The nominees were confirmed by France Football in October and the winner of the prestigious award is set to be announced at a ceremony which takes place on December 2.
Real Madrid playmaker Luka Modric broke a decade-long duopoly between Messi and Ronaldo when he won the 2018 edition, but the Croatian international has not been included in the 2019 list of nominees.
Other nominees for the 2019 Ballon d’Or include Liverpool stars Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, who were massively influential in the Reds’ Champions league success.
Manchester City stars Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling have made the list after leading Pep Guardiola’s side’s charge for domestic glory.
Goalkeeper Alisson Becker are also nominated having starred for Liverpool and Brazil while Paris st German star Kylian Mbappe is in the running after a goal-laden campaign for the Ligue 1 champion.
The award, which is independent of FIFA since 2016, takes into account the performances of a player for the calendar year rather than the previous season.
See the full list of confirmed nominees for the 2019 Ballon d’Or:
- Liverpool: Van Dijk, Firmino, Alisson, Wijnaldum, Alexander-Arnold, Mane and Salah
- Manchester City: De Bruyne, Mahrez, Bernardo Silva, Aguero and Sterling
- Barcelona: Leo Messi, Griezmann, Ter Stegen and De Jong
- Real Madrid: Benzema and Hazard
- Tottenham: Son and Lloris
- Ajax: Van de Beek and Tadic
- Juventus: Cristiano Ronaldo and De Ligt
- PSG: Mbappe and Marquinhos
- Atletico Madrid: Joao Felix
- Napoli: Koulibaly
- Bayern Munich: Lewandowski
- Arsenal: Aubameyang
